A toddler was saved from serious injury during a dramatic rescue after he fell into a particularly deep pump well whilst playing with friends in east China.
The three-year-old boy tumbled part-way down the 300ft shaft and had to be hauled out by the local emergency services in the city of Weifang in Shandong province, People’s Daily Online reports.
Two fire engines with 12 fire fighters rushed to the scene on the morning of March 31 and fed rescue ropes down through the crevice to save the boy.
Touch and go: The 3-year-old toddler was rescued from the hole after a two hour operation in Weifang, China
Dangerous: There was a struggle to extract him given the narrowness of the well opening – just 11 inches wide
There was an initial struggle to extract him given the narrowness of the well opening – just 11 inches wide – and the rescue effort required the use of sensors to monitor the child’s condition.
The boy had been in the well for over half an hour before the firefighters arrived and it was a further two hours before he was successfully removed from the hole.
The rescuers were even forced to pump oxygen into the gap from canisters as it was believed that the boy’s breathing would be inhibited at the depth of 33ft, where he had got stuck.
The toddler was eventually able to grab the rope with one hand and was pulled out by several men.
Risky: The rescue required the use of sensors to monitor the child’s condition and oxygen was pumped in
Relieved: The toddler was eventually able to grab the rope with one hand and was pulled out by several men
Safe at last: The child was scared because of the incident but will not suffer any lasting injuries from his ordeal
He emerged covered in dust and mud but safe, much to the delight of the rescuers and his family.
In the aftermath, the boy’s father Cheng confirmed that the child was unharmed, saying: ‘Although the boy fall into a fairly deep position, he didn’t fall the whole way and only suffered skin trauma.’
He said that the child was scared because of the incident and has been in the hospital crying but will not suffer any lasting injuries from his ordeal.
